New York, 2013

Lake-Effect Snow in New York, February 19 to 21, 2013

February 19 to 21, 2013 · NWS BUF · 7 events in 7 counties and zones

In the wake of a cold front, a cold northwest flow developed over Lakes Erie and Ontario. |Off Lake Erie, although the lake was largely ice-covered, an upstream connection with Lake Huron brought over a foot of snow to the higher elevations of southwest New York.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 7 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
$53,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
7

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS BUF wrote it up.

In the wake of a cold front, a cold northwest flow developed over Lakes Erie and Ontario. |Off Lake Erie, although the lake was largely ice-covered, an upstream connection with Lake Huron brought over a foot of snow to the higher elevations of southwest New York. Specific reports included: 20 inches at Springville, 15 inches at Perrysburg, and 12 inches at West Valley and Warsaw.|Off Lake Ontario, a band of moderate to at times heavy snow developed. Over two feet of snow fell across the western face of the Tug Hill. Specific snowfall reports included: 29 inches at Bennetts Bridge, 24 inches at Redfield, 21 inches at Highmarket, and 20 inches at Altmar.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Buffalo, NY wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 19, 6:26 PM EST, 4 hours 34 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Feb 19, 6:26 PM EST, 4 hours 34 minutes before
<!doctype html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
  <meta charset="utf-8">
  <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
  <title>Service Notice</title>
  <link rel="stylesheet" href="index.css">
</head>
<body>
  <main class="wrap">
    <section class="card" role="status" aria-live="polite">
      <div class="status" id="status">Temporary Notice</div>
      <h1 id="headline">This service is currently unavailable.</h1>
      <p id="message1">
        The site you requested is temporarily down for maintenance or an unexpected outage.
      </p>
      <p id="message2">
        Please try again in a few minutes.
      </p>
      <p class="small" id="detail">
        If you are an administrator, restore upstream service and remove the redirect/fallback rule when normal operations resume.
      </p>
    </section>
  </main>
  <script src="index.js"></script>
</body>
</html>
Hazardous weather outlook, Feb 19, 3:44 PM EST, 7 hours 16 minutes before
<!doctype html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
  <meta charset="utf-8">
  <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
  <title>Service Notice</title>
  <link rel="stylesheet" href="index.css">
</head>
<body>
  <main class="wrap">
    <section class="card" role="status" aria-live="polite">
      <div class="status" id="status">Temporary Notice</div>
      <h1 id="headline">This service is currently unavailable.</h1>
      <p id="message1">
        The site you requested is temporarily down for maintenance or an unexpected outage.
      </p>
      <p id="message2">
        Please try again in a few minutes.
      </p>
      <p class="small" id="detail">
        If you are an administrator, restore upstream service and remove the redirect/fallback rule when normal operations resume.
      </p>
    </section>
  </main>
  <script src="index.js"></script>
</body>
</html>

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

7 lake-effect snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Lake-Effect Snow, Oswego

When
February 19, 11:00 PM EST to February 21, 4:00 AM EST
Where
Oswego forecast zone
Property damage
$10,000
Reported by
Social Media
Coordinates
43.464, -76.209 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Lake-Effect Snow, Jefferson

When
February 19, 11:00 PM EST to February 20, 10:00 AM EST
Where
Jefferson forecast zone
Property damage
$5,000
Reported by
Social Media
Coordinates
43.999, -76.052 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Lake-Effect Snow, Lewis

When
February 19, 11:00 PM EST to February 20, 7:00 PM EST
Where
Lewis forecast zone
Property damage
$8,000
Reported by
COOP Observer
Coordinates
43.785, -75.449 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Lake-Effect Snow, Wyoming

When
February 20, 1:00 AM EST to 3:30 PM EST
Where
Wyoming forecast zone
Property damage
$5,000
Reported by
COOP Observer
Coordinates
42.702, -78.224 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Lake-Effect Snow, Chautauqua

When
February 20, 1:00 AM EST to 3:30 PM EST
Where
Chautauqua forecast zone
Property damage
$10,000
Reported by
Public
Coordinates
42.303, -79.406 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Lake-Effect Snow, Cattaraugus

When
February 20, 1:00 AM EST to 3:30 PM EST
Where
Cattaraugus forecast zone
Property damage
$10,000
Reported by
COOP Observer
Coordinates
42.249, -78.679 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Lake-Effect Snow, Southern Erie

When
February 20, 1:00 AM EST to 3:30 PM EST
Where
Southern Erie forecast zone
Property damage
$5,000
Reported by
COOP Observer
Coordinates
42.758, -78.780 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Lake-Effect Snow
Heavy snow in bands downwind of a large lake as cold air crosses warmer water.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in New York in 2013Every state in 2013This day in weather historyWarnings in New York, February 2013

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-30. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 437974, 437976, 437977, 437968, 437970, 437971, 437972.